Articles | Volume 17, issue 9
https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-17-4957-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-17-4957-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Data description paper
| 
29 Sep 2025
Data description paper |
| 29 Sep 2025
| 29 Sep 2025
Multidecadal satellite-derived Portuguese Burn Severity Atlas (1984–2022)
Centro de Estudos Florestais, Instituto Superior de Agronomia, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal
Joana Parente
cE3c–Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes, and CHANGE Global Change and Sustainability Institute, Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal
Oscar Gonzalez-Pelayo
Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies (CESAM), Department of Environment and Planning, University of Aveiro, Campus Universitario de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
Akli Benali
Centro de Estudos Florestais, Laboratório Associado TERRA, Instituto Superior de Agronomia, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal
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Akli Benali, Nuno Guiomar, Hugo Gonçalves, Bernardo Mota, Fábio Silva, Paulo M. Fernandes, Carlos Mota, Alexandre Penha, João Santos, José M. C. Pereira, and Ana C. L. Sá
Earth Syst. Sci. Data, 15, 3791–3818, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-3791-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-3791-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
We reconstructed the spread of 80 large wildfires that burned recently in Portugal and calculated metrics that describe how wildfires behave, such as rate of spread, growth rate, and energy released. We describe the fire behaviour distribution using six percentile intervals that can be easily communicated to both research and management communities. The database will help improve our current knowledge on wildfire behaviour and support better decision making.
Tomás Calheiros, Akli Benali, Mário Pereira, João Silva, and João Nunes
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 4019–4037, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-22-4019-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-22-4019-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Fire weather indices are used to assess the effect of weather on wildfires. Fire weather risk was computed and combined with large wildfires in Portugal. Results revealed the influence of vegetation cover: municipalities with a prevalence of shrublands, located in eastern parts, burnt under less extreme conditions than those with higher forested areas, situated in coastal regions. These findings are a novelty for fire science in Portugal and should be considered for fire management.
Ana C. L. Sá, Bruno Aparicio, Akli Benali, Chiara Bruni, Michele Salis, Fábio Silva, Martinho Marta-Almeida, Susana Pereira, Alfredo Rocha, and José Pereira
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 22, 3917–3938, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-22-3917-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-22-3917-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Assessing landscape wildfire connectivity supported by wildfire spread simulations can improve fire hazard assessment and fuel management plans. Weather severity determines the degree of fuel patch connectivity and thus the potential to spread large and intense wildfires. Mapping highly connected patches in the landscape highlights patch candidates for prior fuel treatments, which ultimately will contribute to creating fire-resilient Mediterranean landscapes.
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Short summary
This data description paper provides details on the development of the first Portuguese Burn Severity Atlas for 1984 to 2022, derived from satellite imagery via the Google Earth Engine platform. Moreover, a semi-automated code was also developed, which can be used to create a burn severity atlas of any other region in the world. The maps of this atlas can be used not only in fields related to fire ecology and management but also within research areas related to air, water, and soil.
This data description paper provides details on the development of the first Portuguese Burn...
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